McDonald's introduced the modern Golden Arches logo designed by Jim Schindler in 1968.
The logo transformed the two separate architectural arches into a unified, stylized M. Jim Schindler created the recognizable form by combining the arches and adding a diagonal line that visually connected them. This version helped McDonald's maintain a link with its restaurant architecture while creating a symbol that could work on signs, packaging, advertisements, and corporate materials.
Earlier arches had appeared on restaurant buildings during the 1950s, and a different logo style had been used before 1968. The 1968 design therefore marked a major step in turning the arches into a consistent corporate identity rather than merely a building feature.
The logo has been refined in later decades, but its basic M-shaped concept remains unmistakably connected to McDonald's. The design is sometimes incorrectly attributed to Ray Kroc, who was the company's key expansion figure rather than its logo designer.